Surface finishing machine



May 26, 1964 w. c. BURT 3,134,201

SURFACE FINISHING MACHINE Filed Oct. ll, 1962 "Hmmmmmmmmlm T0 ATMOSPHEREINVENTOR.

WILLIAM C. BURT @3444-, ATTORNEYS' Illilllnnm United States Patent O3,134,201 SURFACE FINISHING MACHINE William C. Burt, Olean, N.Y.,assiguor to Clair Manufacturing Co., Inc., Olean, N .Y. Filed oct. 11,1962, ser. No. 229,952 2 Claims. (Cl. 51-84) This invention relates toimprovements in surface finishing machines of the type variously knownas bufiing, polishing, glazing machines, or the like. Such machines areparticularly adapted to surface-process workpieces such as flatware,hand tools, industrial jewelry, decorative hardware, and the like. Thus,the invention relates to machines of the type disclosed for example inearlier U.S. Patents 2,269,311 and 2,458,708.

One object of the present invention is to provide in a machine asaforesaid, in combination with a space-adjustable double rollarrangement, an improved roll pressure regulating means; thus providinga machine of improved functional characteristics which at all timessubmits the workpieces to uniform roll pressures, in combination with aquick and positive roll opening and closing arrangement.

Another object is to provide in a machine as afore-` said, aninexpensive and trouble-free and otherwise improved roll pressureregulating system.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will appear from thespecification hereinafter and the accompanying drawing wherein:

FIG. 1 is a fragmentary top plan view of a machine embodying theinvention;

FIG. 2 is a sectional View of the machine taken on line II-Il of FIG. l;and

FIG. 3 is a view corresponding to FIG. 2 but showing the machine rollsin open position.

The drawings herewith illustrate the invention as being employed in amachine of the general type shown in my earlier Patent No. 2,458,708,and deals with an improvement in that portion of the machine mechanismwhich is shown in FIG. 3 of the patent. Thus, as illustrated in thedrawing herewith, the machine includes a base or frame 10 supported bylegs 12 to a convenient height; frame 10 in turn supporting theoscillating workpiece carriage and the polishing or glazing rolls, andother mechanisms for driving and controlling the carriage and rolls asexplained in Patent No. 2,458,708.

The rolls are indicated at 14-16; the roll 14 being mounted above theroll 16, and the rolls will of course be formed of any suitable materialtreated in any desired manner according to the character of the work tobe done. The roll 14 is carried upon a shaft 18 while the roll 16 iscarried upon a shaft 19.

They shaft 18 is journalled at its opposite ends upon rocker arms 20which extend from opposite ends of a rocker shaft 24; the shaft 24 beingin turn rotatably supported by means of pedestals 26 which extendvertically from opposite ends of the base plate 10. A second rockershaft 30 is similarly journalled upon the pedestals 26 so as to extendparallel to the rocker shaft 24 and therebelow. Rocker arms 32 extendfrom the rocker shaft 30 in parallel relation and carry at their outerends the lower roll shaft 19 in journalled relation thereon. The rockershaft 24 is tted with rearwardly extending crank arm 40 carrying a screwblock 44. The rocker shaft 30 carries a crank arm 45 which terminates ina ball bearing 46 having a vertical slide aperture therethrough. Ahydraulic cylinder member 48 -is suspended from its upper end to thebearing 46 and slidably mounts therein a piston 50 which is fixed uponthe lower end of a screw 52 which extends upwardly through the head ofthe cylinder 48 and thence through the slide bearing 46 and thencethrough the nut 44 which it engages in screw-thread relation. At itsupper end the screw 52 carries a hand wheel 56. As in the case of the3,134,201 Patented May 26., 1964 ice earlier patents referred to, therocker shafts are geared together by means of spur gears as indicatedherein at 57. Hence the cylinder piston unit 48-50 is operable to forcethe rocker crank arms to swing the rolls apart so as to open the rolls14-16 such as to the positions thereof shown in FIG. 3. Also, it will beappreciated that the hand wheel S6 is manually adjustable for purposesof regulating the distance between the rolls under operating conditions,so as to suit the machine to different'classes of work.

In accord with the present invention the shaft 30 also carries a secondcrank arm 58 from which is suspended a counterweight 59 for angularlyadjusting the attitude yof the arms which carry the rolls 14-16. Thus,the hanging of an appropriate weight upon the arm 5S will impose uponthe rolls 14-16 any desired closing and working pressure, assuming thecylinder-piston unit 48-50 to be idle. To vary this pressure, the weightmay be adjusted longitudinally on the arm 58.

Motors as indicated at 60 are coupled to the rolls 14, 16, respectively,as by means of flexible belts or the like as indicated at 64. The workmounting carriage portion of the machine is illustrated herein tocomprise a table 70 which is mounted upon the base plate 10 by means ofslideways so that the table 70 is reciprocable horizontally indirections transverse to the rolls 14-16. Suitable means (not shown) maybe provided to cause the platform 70 to reciprocate toward and away fromthe rolls 14-16, as shown in Patent No. 2,458,708. A second platform isreciprocable relative to the platform 70 in directions axially of therolls 14-16 independently of reciprocation of the platform 70, andsuitable means (not shown) may be provided to cause the platform 80 toreciprocate in sidewise directions independently of backward and forwardreciprocations of the platform 70. The platform 80 receives inslideaiitting relation thereon a work carrying plate 124. Thus, a gangof workpieces may be clamped upon the plate 124, as by means of anysuitable detachable holders so that the workpieces are mounted toyextend therefrom into position between the rolls.

It will of course be appreciated that whenever a batch of workpieces isfinished and the operator actuates the roll open valve 126 as explainedfor example in Patent 2,458,708, the oil pressure enters the top ofcylinder 48 and forces the piston 50 to lower the rod 52, therebyopening the rolls against the pull of the weight 59. This arrangement isgood because the hydraulic mechanism provides a positive andquick-acting roll opening control which speeds the over all operation.However, when the oil pressure is released and the control valvediverted to the return conduit, the counterweight 59 is thereby freed toprovide a uniform roll pressure against the work, as explainedhereinabove.

It will be understood that whereas only one specificv a pair ofhorizontal rocker shafts journalled in said frame in vertically spacedparallel relation to each other,

a pair of rocker arms xed to each rocker shaft in longitudinally spacedrelation thereon, each such pair of rocker arms projecting generallyhorizontally from its associated rocker shaft whereby the free ends ofthe rocker arms fixed to one rocker shaft are spaced above the free endsof the rocker arms fixed to the other rocker shaft,

a pair of surface finishing rolls, one being journalled between the freeends of one pair of rocker arms and the other being journalled betweenthe free ends of the other pair of rocker arms,

means for rotatably driving said surface finishing rolls,

a crank arm fixed to each rocker shaft and each projecting generallyhorizontally from its associated rocker shaft whereby the free ends ofsaid crank arms are in spaced vertical registry, Y'

gear means interconnecting said rocker shafts whereby the rocker shaftsare constrained to rotate in relatively opposite directions,

a nut member rotatably carried by the free end of one of said crankarms,

a double-ended cylinder rotatably carried by the free end of the othercrank arm,

a roll spacing screw having a threaded portion engaged with said nutmember and having a piston disposed within said cylinder,

means for selectively pressuring said cylinder on one side of saidpiston to rotate said rocker shafts in a direction to move said surfacefinishing rolls apart,

and means for causing said surface finishing rolls to impose apredetermined pressure upon a workpiece disposed therebetween, in whichsuch pressure is substantially completely independent of the rollspacing as effected by said roll spacing screw, the last mentioned meanscomprising a second crank arm xed t0 the lower of said rocker shafts andprojecting horizontally therefrom in a direction opposite to said rockerarms which are fixed to such rocker shaft, and a weight carried by thefree end of said second crank arm. 2. In a machine as defined in claim 1wherein said weight is longitudinally adjustable along said secondrocker arm.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS1,440,386 Hawes Jan. 2, 1923 2,458,708 Johnson et al. Ian. 11, 19492,612,005 Burt Sept. 30,1952 3,089,287 Dilks May 14, 1963

1. IN A WORKPIECE SURFACE FINISHING MACHINE, IN COMBINATION, A FRAME, APAIR OF HORIZONTAL ROCKER SHAFTS JOURNALLED IN SAID FRAME IN VERTICALLYSPACED PARALLEL RELATION TO EACH OTHER, A PAIR OF ROCKER ARMS FIXED TOEACH ROCKER SHAFT IN LONGITUDINALLY SPACED RELATION THEREON, EACH SUCHPAIR OF ROCKER ARMS PROJECTING GENERALLY HORIZONTALLY FROM ITSASSOCIATED ROCKER SHAFT WHEREBY THE FREE ENDS OF THE ROCKER ARMS FIXEDTO ONE ROCKER SHAFT ARE SPACED ABOVE THE FREE ENDS OF THE ROCKER ARMSFIXED TO THE OTHER ROCKER SHAFT, A PAIR OF SURFACE FINISHING ROLLS, ONEBEING JOURNALLED BETWEEN THE FREE ENDS OF ONE PAIR OF ROCKER ARMS ANDTHE OTHER BEING JOURNALLED BETWEEN THE FREE ENDS OF THE OTHER PAIR OFROCKER ARMS, MEANS FOR ROTATABLY DRIVING SAID SURFACE FINISHING ROLLS, ACRANK ARM FIXED TO EACH ROCKER SHAFT AND EACH PROJECTING GENERALLYHORIZONTALLY FROM ITS ASSOCIATED ROCKER SHAFT WHEREBY THE FREE ENDS OFSAID CRANK ARMS ARE IN SPACED VERTICAL REGISTRY, GEAR MEANSINTERCONNECTING SAID ROCKER SHAFTS WHEREBY THE ROCKER SHAFTS ARECONSTRAINED TO ROTATE IN RELATIVELY OPPOSITE DIRECTIONS, A NUT MEMBERROTATABLY CARRIED BY THE FREE END OF ONE OF SAID CRANK ARMS, ADOUBLE-ENDED CYLINDER ROTATABLY CARRIED BY THE FREE END OF THE OTHERCRANK ARM, A ROLL SPACING SCREW HAVING A THREADED PORTION ENGAGED WITHSAID NUT MEMBER AND HAVING A PISTON DISPOSED WITHIN SAID CYLINDER, MEANSFOR SELECTIVELY PRESSURING SAID CYLINDER ON ONE SIDE OF SAID PISTON TOROTATE SAID ROCKER SHAFTS IN A DIRECTION TO MOVE SAID SURFACE FINISHINGROLLS APART, AND MEANS FOR CAUSING SAID SURFACE FINISHING ROLLS TOIMPOSE A PREDETERMINED PRESSURE UPON A WORKPIECE DISPOSED THEREBETWEEN,IN WHICH SUCH PRESSURE IS SUBSTANTIALLY COMPLETELY INDEPENDENT OF THEROLL SPACING AS EFFECTED BY SAID ROLL SPACING SCREW, THE LAST MENTIONEDMEANS COMPRISING A SECOND CRANK ARM FIXED TO THE LOWER OF SAID ROCKERSHAFTS AND PROJECTING HORIZONTALLY THEREFROM IN A DIRECTION OPPOSITE TOSAID ROCKER ARMS WHICH ARE FIXED TO SUCH ROCKER SHAFT, AND A WEIGHTCARRIED BY THE FREE END OF SAID SECOND CRANK ARM.